HB0021sam006 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. John J. Cullerton

Filed: 5/16/2005

09400HB0021sam006 LRB094 02432 DRH 46513 a

AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 21

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 21, AS AMENDED, by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing Sections 6-306.5, 11-208, and 11-306 and adding Section 11-208.5 as follows:

(625 ILCS 5/6-306.5) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 6-306.5)

Sec. 6-306.5. Failure to pay fine or penalty for standing, parking, or compliance, or automated traffic law violations; suspension of driving privileges.

(a) Upon receipt of a certified report, as prescribed by subsection (c) of this Section, from any municipality stating that the owner of a registered vehicle has: (1) failed to pay any fine or penalty due and owing as a result of 10 or more violations of a municipality's vehicular standing, parking, or compliance regulations established by ordinance pursuant to Section 11-208.3 of this Code, or (2) failed to pay any fine or penalty due and owing as a result of 5 offenses for automated traffic violations as defined in Section 11-208.5, the Secretary of State shall suspend the driving privileges of such person in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Section. The Secretary shall also suspend the driving privileges of an owner of a registered vehicle upon receipt of a certified report, as prescribed by subsection (f) of this Section, from any municipality stating that such person has failed to satisfy any fines or penalties imposed by final judgments for 5 or more automated traffic law violations or 10 or more violations of local standing, parking, or compliance regulations after exhaustion of judicial review procedures.

(b) Following receipt of the certified report of the municipality as specified in this Section, the Secretary of State shall notify the person whose name appears on the certified report that the person's drivers license will be suspended at the end of a specified period of time unless the Secretary of State is presented with a notice from the municipality certifying that the fine or penalty due and owing the municipality has been paid or that inclusion of that person's name on the certified report was in error. The Secretary's notice shall state in substance the information contained in the municipality's certified report to the Secretary, and shall be effective as specified by subsection (c) of Section 6-211 of this Code.

(c) The report of the appropriate municipal official notifying the Secretary of State of unpaid fines or penalties pursuant to this Section shall be certified and shall contain the following:

(1) The name, last known address and drivers license number of the person who failed to pay the fine or penalty and the registration number of any vehicle known to be registered to such person in this State.

(2) The name of the municipality making the report pursuant to this Section.

(3) A statement that the municipality sent a notice of impending drivers license suspension as prescribed by ordinance enacted pursuant to Section 11-208.3, to the person named in the report at the address recorded with the Secretary of State; the date on which such notice was sent; and the address to which such notice was sent. In a municipality with a population of 1,000,000 or more, the report shall also include a statement that the alleged violator's State vehicle registration number and vehicle make are correct as they appear on the citations.

(d) Any municipality making a certified report to the Secretary of State pursuant to this Section shall notify the Secretary of State, in a form prescribed by the Secretary, whenever a person named in the certified report has paid the previously reported fine or penalty or whenever the municipality determines that the original report was in error. A certified copy of such notification shall also be given upon request and at no additional charge to the person named therein. Upon receipt of the municipality's notification or presentation of a certified copy of such notification, the Secretary of State shall terminate the suspension.

(e) Any municipality making a certified report to the Secretary of State pursuant to this Section shall also by ordinance establish procedures for persons to challenge the accuracy of the certified report. The ordinance shall also state the grounds for such a challenge, which may be limited to (1) the person not having been the owner or lessee of the vehicle or vehicles receiving 10 or more standing, parking, or compliance violation notices or 5 or more automated traffic law violation notices on the date or dates such notices were issued; and (2) the person having already paid the fine or penalty for the 10 or more standing, parking, or compliance violations or 5 or more automated traffic law violations indicated on the certified report.

(f) Any municipality, other than a municipality establishing vehicular standing, parking, and compliance regulations pursuant to Section 11-208.3 or automated traffic law regulations under Section 11-208.5, may also cause a suspension of a person's drivers license pursuant to this Section. Such municipality may invoke this sanction by making a certified report to the Secretary of State upon a person's failure to satisfy any fine or penalty imposed by final judgment for 10 or more violations of local standing, parking, or compliance regulations or 5 or more automated traffic law violations after exhaustion of judicial review procedures, but only if:

(1) the municipality complies with the provisions of this Section in all respects except in regard to enacting an ordinance pursuant to Section 11-208.3;

(2) the municipality has sent a notice of impending drivers license suspension as prescribed by an ordinance enacted pursuant to subsection (g) of this Section; and

(3) in municipalities with a population of 1,000,000 or more, the municipality has verified that the alleged violator's State vehicle registration number and vehicle make are correct as they appear on the citations.

(g) Any municipality, other than a municipality establishing standing, parking, and compliance regulations pursuant to Section 11-208.3 or automated traffic law regulations under Section 11-208.5, may provide by ordinance for the sending of a notice of impending drivers license suspension to the person who has failed to satisfy any fine or penalty imposed by final judgment for 10 or more violations of local standing, parking, or compliance regulations or 5 or more automated traffic law violations after exhaustion of judicial review procedures. An ordinance so providing shall specify that the notice sent to the person liable for any fine or penalty shall state that failure to pay the fine or penalty owing within 45 days of the notice's date will result in the municipality notifying the Secretary of State that the person's drivers license is eligible for suspension pursuant to this Section. The notice of impending drivers license suspension shall be sent by first class United States mail, postage prepaid, to the address recorded with the Secretary of State.

(h) An administrative hearing to contest an impending suspension or a suspension made pursuant to this Section may be had upon filing a written request with the Secretary of State. The filing fee for this hearing shall be $20, to be paid at the time the request is made. A municipality which files a certified report with the Secretary of State pursuant to this Section shall reimburse the Secretary for all reasonable costs incurred by the Secretary as a result of the filing of the report, including but not limited to the costs of providing the notice required pursuant to subsection (b) and the costs incurred by the Secretary in any hearing conducted with respect to the report pursuant to this subsection and any appeal from such a hearing.

(i) The provisions of this Section shall apply on and after January 1, 1988.

(j) For purposes of this Section, the term "compliance violation" is defined as in Section 11-208.3.

(Source: P.A. 89-190, eff. 1-1-96; 90-145, eff. 1-1-98; 90-481, eff. 8-17-97.)

(625 ILCS 5/11-208) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-208)

Sec. 11-208. Powers of local authorities.

(a) The provisions of this Code shall not be deemed to prevent local authorities with respect to streets and highways under their jurisdiction and within the reasonable exercise of the police power from:

1. Regulating the standing or parking of vehicles, except as limited by Section 11-1306 of this Act;

2. Regulating traffic by means of police officers or traffic control signals;

3. Regulating or prohibiting processions or assemblages on the highways;

4. Designating particular highways as one-way highways and requiring that all vehicles thereon be moved in one specific direction;

5. Regulating the speed of vehicles in public parks subject to the limitations set forth in Section 11-604;

6. Designating any highway as a through highway, as authorized in Section 11-302, and requiring that all vehicles stop before entering or crossing the same or designating any intersection as a stop intersection or a yield right-of-way intersection and requiring all vehicles to stop or yield the right-of-way at one or more entrances to such intersections;

7. Restricting the use of highways as authorized in Chapter 15;

8. Regulating the operation of bicycles and requiring the registration and licensing of same, including the requirement of a registration fee;

9. Regulating or prohibiting the turning of vehicles or specified types of vehicles at intersections;

10. Altering the speed limits as authorized in Section 11-604;

11. Prohibiting U-turns;

12. Prohibiting pedestrian crossings at other than designated and marked crosswalks or at intersections;

13. Prohibiting parking during snow removal operation;

14. Imposing fines in accordance with Section 11-1301.3 as penalties for use of any parking place reserved for persons with disabilities, as defined by Section 1-159.1, or disabled veterans by any person using a motor vehicle not bearing registration plates specified in Section 11-1301.1 or a special decal or device as defined in Section 11-1301.2 as evidence that the vehicle is operated by or for a person with disabilities or disabled veteran;

15. Adopting such other traffic regulations as are specifically authorized by this Code; or

16. Enforcing the provisions of subsection (f) of Section 3-413 of this Code or a similar local ordinance.

(b) No ordinance or regulation enacted under subsections 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11 or 13 of paragraph (a) shall be effective until signs giving reasonable notice of such local traffic regulations are posted.

(c) The provisions of this Code shall not prevent any municipality having a population of 500,000 or more inhabitants from prohibiting any person from driving or operating any motor vehicle upon the roadways of such municipality with headlamps on high beam or bright.

(d) The provisions of this Code shall not be deemed to prevent local authorities within the reasonable exercise of their police power from prohibiting, on private property, the unauthorized use of parking spaces reserved for persons with disabilities.

(e) No unit of local government, including a home rule unit, may enact or enforce an ordinance that applies only to motorcycles if the principal purpose for that ordinance is to restrict the access of motorcycles to any highway or portion of a highway for which federal or State funds have been used for the planning, design, construction, or maintenance of that highway. No unit of local government, including a home rule unit, may enact an ordinance requiring motorcycle users to wear protective headgear. Nothing in this subsection (e) shall affect the authority of a unit of local government to regulate motorcycles for traffic control purposes or in accordance with Section 12-602 of this Code. No unit of local government, including a home rule unit, may regulate motorcycles in a manner inconsistent with this Code. This subsection (e) is a limitation under subsection (i) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the concurrent exercise by home rule units of powers and functions exercised by the State.

(f) A municipality or county may enact an ordinance providing for an automated traffic law enforcement system to enforce violations of Section 11-306 of this Code or a similar provision of a local ordinance.

(Source: P.A. 90-106, eff. 1-1-98; 90-513, eff. 8-22-97; 90-655, eff. 7-30-98; 91-519, eff. 1-1-00.)

(625 ILCS 5/11-208.5 new)

Sec. 11-208.5. Automated traffic law enforcement system.

(a) As used in this Section, "automated traffic law enforcement system" means a device with one or more motor vehicle sensors working in conjunction with a red light signal to produce recorded images of motor vehicles entering an intersection against a red signal indication in violation of Section 11-306 of this Code or a similar provision of a local ordinance.

An automated traffic law enforcement system is a system in a municipality or county operated by a governmental agency, in cooperation with a law enforcement agency, that produces a recorded image of a motor vehicle's violation of a provision of this Code or a local ordinance and is designed to obtain a clear recorded image of the vehicle and the vehicle's license plate. The recorded image must also display the time, date, and location of the violation.

(b) As used in this Section, "recorded images" means images recorded by an automated traffic law enforcement system on:

(1) 2 or more photographs;

(2) 2 or more microphotographs;

(3) 2 or more electronic images; or

(4) a videotape showing the motor vehicle and, on at least one image or portion of tape, clearly identifying the registration plate number of the motor vehicle.

(c) For each violation of a provision of this Code or a local ordinance recorded by an automatic traffic law enforcement system, the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction shall issue a written citation and a notice of the violation to the registered owner of the vehicle as the alleged violator. The citation and notice shall be delivered to the registered owner of the vehicle, by mail, within 90 days of the violation.

The citation shall include:

(1) the name and address of the registered owner of the vehicle;

(2) the registration number of the motor vehicle involved in the violation;

(3) the violation charged;

(4) the location where the violation occurred;

(5) the date and time of the violation;

(6) a copy of the recorded images;

(7) the amount of the civil penalty imposed and the date by which the civil penalty should be paid;

(8) a signed statement by a technician employed by the agency that, based on inspection of recorded images, the motor vehicle was being operated in violation of an automated traffic law enforcement system;

(9) a statement that recorded images are evidence of a violation of a red light signal; and

(10) a warning that failure to pay the civil penalty or to contest liability in a timely manner is an admission of liability and may result in a suspension of the driving privileges of the registered owner of the vehicle.

(d) The citation issued to the registered owner of the vehicle shall be accompanied by a written notice, the contents of which is set forth in subsection (e) of this Section, explaining how the registered owner of the vehicle can elect to proceed by either paying the civil penalty or challenging the issuance of the citation.

(e) The written notice explaining the alleged violator's rights and obligations must include the following text:

"You have been served with the accompanying citation and cited with having violated Section 11-208.5 of the Illinois Vehicle Code. You can elect to proceed by:

1. paying the fine; or

2. challenging the issuance of the citation in court."

(f) If a person charged with a traffic violation, as a result of an automated traffic law enforcement system, does not pay or successfully contest the civil penalty resulting from that violation, the Secretary of State shall suspend the driving privileges of the registered owner of the vehicle under Section 6-306.5 of this Code for failing to pay any fine or penalty due and owing as a result of 5 violations of the automated traffic law enforcement system.

(g) Based on inspection of recorded images produced by an automated traffic law enforcement system, a citation or a copy of a citation alleging that the violation occurred and signed by a duly authorized agent of the agency shall be evidence of the facts contained in the citation or copy and admissible in any proceeding alleging a violation under this Section.

(h) Recorded images made by an automatic traffic law enforcement system are confidential and shall be made available only to the alleged violator and governmental and law enforcement agencies for purposes of adjudicating a violation of this Section. Any recorded image evidencing a violation of this Section, however, is admissible in any proceeding resulting from the issuance of the citation when there is reasonable and sufficient proof of the accuracy of the camera or electronic instrument recording the image. There is a rebuttable presumption that the recorded image is accurate if the camera or electronic recording instrument was in good working order at the beginning and the end of the day of the alleged offense.

(i) The court may consider in defense of a violation:

(1) that the motor vehicle or registration plates of the motor vehicle were stolen before the violation occurred and not under the control of or in the possession of the owner at the time of the violation;

(2) that the driver of the vehicle passed through the intersection when the light was red either (i) in order to yield the right-of-way to an emergency vehicle or (ii) as part of a funeral procession; and

(3) any other evidence or issues that the Court deems pertinent.

(j) To demonstrate that the motor vehicle or the registration plates were stolen before the violation occurred and were not under the control or possession of the owner at the time of the violation, the owner must submit proof that a police report concerning the stolen motor vehicle or registration plates was filed in a timely manner.

(k) Unless the driver of the motor vehicle received a Uniform Traffic Citation from a police officer at the time of the violation, the motor vehicle owner is subject to a civil penalty not exceeding $500 if the motor vehicle is recorded by an automated traffic law enforcement system. A violation for which a civil penalty is imposed under this Section is not a violation of a traffic regulation governing the movement of vehicles and may not be recorded on the driving record of the owner of the vehicle.

(l) An intersection equipped with an automated traffic law enforcement system must be posted with a sign visible to approaching traffic indicating that the intersection is being monitored by an automated traffic law enforcement system.

(m) The compensation paid for an automated traffic law enforcement system must be based on the value of the equipment or the services provided and may not be based on the number of traffic citations issued or the revenue generated by the system.

(625 ILCS 5/11-306) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-306)

Sec. 11-306. Traffic-control signal legend. Whenever traffic is controlled by traffic-control signals exhibiting different colored lights or color lighted arrows, successively one at a time or in combination, only the colors green, red and yellow shall be used, except for special pedestrian signals carrying a word legend, and the lights shall indicate and apply to drivers of vehicles and pedestrians as follows:

(a) Green indication.

1. Vehicular traffic facing a circular green signal may proceed straight through or turn right or left unless a sign at such place prohibits either such turn. Vehicular traffic, including vehicles turning right or left, shall yield the right of way to other vehicles and to pedestrians lawfully within the intersection or an adjacent crosswalk at the time such signal is exhibited.

2. Vehicular traffic facing a green arrow signal, shown alone or in combination with another indication, may cautiously enter the intersection only to make the movement indicated by such arrow, or such other movement as is permitted by other indications shown at the same time. Such vehicular traffic shall yield the right of way to pedestrians lawfully within an adjacent crosswalk and to other traffic lawfully using the intersection.

3. Unless otherwise directed by a pedestrian-control signal, as provided in Section 11-307, pedestrians facing any green signal, except when the sole green signal is a turn arrow, may proceed across the roadway within any marked or unmarked crosswalk.

(b) Steady yellow indication.

1. Vehicular traffic facing a steady circular yellow or yellow arrow signal is thereby warned that the related green movement is being terminated or that a red indication will be exhibited immediately thereafter.

2. Pedestrians facing a steady circular yellow or yellow arrow signal, unless otherwise directed by a pedestrian-control signal as provided in Section 11-307, are thereby advised that there is insufficient time to cross the roadway before a red indication is shown and no pedestrian shall then start to cross the roadway.

(c) Steady red indication.

1. Except as provided in paragraph 3 of this subsection (c), vehicular traffic facing a steady circular red signal alone shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, but if there is no such stop line, before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection, or if there is no such crosswalk, then before entering the intersection, and shall remain standing until an indication to proceed is shown.

2. Except as provided in paragraph 3 of this subsection (c), vehicular traffic facing a steady red arrow signal shall not enter the intersection to make the movement indicated by the arrow and, unless entering the intersection to make a movement permitted by another signal, shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, but if there is no such stop line, before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection, or if there is no such crosswalk, then before entering the intersection, and shall remain standing until an indication permitting the movement indicated by such red arrow is shown.

3. Except when a sign is in place prohibiting a turn and local authorities by ordinance or State authorities by rule or regulation prohibit any such turn, vehicular traffic facing any steady red signal may cautiously enter the intersection to turn right, or to turn left from a one-way street into a one-way street, after stopping as required by paragraph 1 or paragraph 2 of this subsection. After stopping, the driver shall yield the right of way to any vehicle in the intersection or approaching on another roadway so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time such driver is moving across or within the intersection or junction or roadways. Such driver shall yield the right of way to pedestrians within the intersection or an adjacent crosswalk.

4. Unless otherwise directed by a pedestrian-control signal as provided in Section 11-307, pedestrians facing a steady circular red or red arrow signal alone shall not enter the roadway.

5. A municipality with a population of 1,000,000 or more may enact an ordinance that provides for the use of an automated red light enforcement system to enforce violations of this subsection (c) that result in or involve a motor vehicle accident, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident, or reckless driving that results in bodily injury.

This paragraph 5 is subject to prosecutorial discretion that is consistent with applicable law.

(d) In the event an official traffic control signal is erected and maintained at a place other than an intersection, the provisions of this Section shall be applicable except as to provisions which by their nature can have no application. Any stop required shall be at a traffic sign or a marking on the pavement indicating where the stop shall be made or, in the absence of such sign or marking, the stop shall be made at the signal.

(e) The motorman of any streetcar shall obey the above signals as applicable to vehicles.

(Source: P.A. 90-86, eff. 7-10-97; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)

(625 ILCS 5/1-105.5 rep.)

Section 10. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by repealing Section 1-105.5.".